A Future To Look Forward To
by Amaherst
Summary: Christmas Fic. Mainly HarryXGinny. Small dose of Ron and Hermione though. Please review, its Chrismas after all!


Snow slowly started to drift down upon the scene of the lovers laughing together and playing in the snow that had fallen the night before. It was Christmas eve, the second Christmas holidays since the battle at Hogwarts and Harry and Hermione were over for Christmas to spend the holidays with their lovers.

Their lives had slowly started to get to a form of normality after the war. The losses still burnt deeply in their hearts and souls and they would never be forgotten but to live in grief and sadness was not a life especially when they knew that the fallen would not have appreciated it if they did not continue to live their life to the full.

Hermione laughed as Ron got smacked in the face by a large snowball threw by his sister; Ginny.

"So you think its funny do you, Hermione?" Ron asked menacingly.

Hermione continued to chuckle away but she abruptly stopped when three snowballs hit her.

"Not so funny now?" Ron laughed but he, too, stopped when Hermione lunged for him causing both of them to fall to the snow bitten ground.

Harry shook his head at them but smiled nonetheless. He heard Ginny giggle as the couple lying on the floor began making snow angels. He walked over to her and sat next to her on the frosty bench.

"Anyone would think they were four year olds!" Ginny smiled.

"I know, but heck, they deserve it. We all do. We had to grow up way too fast" Harry said trailing away in thought as he often did these days.

Ginny watched him deep in thought and could hear her brothers and best friends' laughter and decided it was time for her to have her festive fun. She jumped up, grabbed Harry by the hand and ran out of the gate and towards the muggle village.

"So what do you have in mind?" Harry asked as he caught his breath and having run so fast he assumed so her brother wouldn't see.

"You'll see!" Ginny laughed happily.

Harry smiled and wrapped his arm around her shoulder, drawing her closer in the process.

They walked all through the quiet village, only seeing an ageing gentleman buying some last minute chocolates, to the crystallized woods.

They silently walked through the clearing in the trees and carried on walking until they were deep in the woods. Ginny stopped and leaned against a tree.

"I used to come here when I was little, when all my brothers were off to school or work, I haven't been able to get down here for a while and it's the first time I've ever brought someone with me"

"I feel privileged then" Harry said sitting down on a fallen tree and looking up at her. He marvelled at her beauty. She was wearing an A-line denim skirt with black tights with a three quarter black coat on with matching scarf, gloves and hat with elegant long curls falling down the length of her neck and framing her face delicately. And he knew from seeing her without the coat on earlier that she was wearing a black long sleeved, low cut top on underneath the coat. He felt a mess compared to her.

"I wonder how long you could stare at me since it's what you've been doing for like the past ten minutes in silence never the less!" Ginny laughed sitting beside him.

"I could stare at you forever Gin and it would be a very happy life for me" He said smiling as he slid her onto his lap and kissed her warm lips.

"Do you love me Harry?" she asked quietly.

"Of course I do Gin, I couldn't live without you. Not now, not ever" He replied tightening his embrace on her.

She smiled happily and placed her head on his shoulder. "Good, because I don't want you to be able to!"

He joined in with her laughter.

"So you want to be with me for the rest of your life?" he asked her.

"Yeah, to be Mrs Potter, have children around our feet and just have the perfect family life"

Harry looked down smiling to himself. He had to admit that the image of that brought tears to his eyes and what was more breath taking to him was that it could actually become a real image. He no longer had the threat of Lord Voldemort; he no longer bore the weight of the wizarding world on his shoulders. He could finally have a future.

"You okay?" Ginny asked shyly noticing a tear sliding down his pink tinted cheek.

He looked up and saw her studying him intently. He took her hands in his own. "I've never been more okay in my life Ginny; everything is near enough right. And I really can't wait for that future to be here"

It took a few minutes to realise what Harry meant, but once Ginny understood, she too matched Ginny's happy face.

"I really do love you Gin. I know I've said it before but you were the one I had to think about to let Tom kill me. To know I was creating a better world for you to live in allowed me to have the courage I don't think I would have had otherwise"

Ginny knew he was about to continue but stopped him having heard versions of this before.

"I know Harry, I love you too. I put my stubbornness aside for you. Do you realise how hard that was for me?!" Ginny laughed managing to steer the conversation from Harry being killed. It brought bad images back to Ginny's mind that she hated. She hated seeing that bruise and scar on his chest where it had hit him. It still caused him pain. But he always joked about it to her knowing it was uneasy for her to see it during their heights of passion.

"Yes, Ginny, I do realise how hard it must have been" He chuckled. "We should head back; the snow is starting to fall pretty heavy now"

Ginny sighed but nodded and stood up to grip Harry's hand so he could apparate them back to The Burrow.

They quietly entered the gate and found Ron and Hermione cuddling on the bench that they had vacated an hour ago.

Ron swivelled his head round when he heard the gate bang shut.

"Where'd you two go?" he asked.

"Somewhere" Ginny shrugged and went inside to get warm.

Harry watched her go inside and joined his best friends on the bench and soon found himself drifting off in thoughts about Ginny and children and an 'oh so happy future'.

Hermione watched him and smiled. She had never seen her best friend as happy as he had been this last year with Ginny. Last year had been plagued with grief, sadness and a sense of not knowing what to do. But it had all pieced together eventually and the Weasley's had themselves two new happy couples. _'Yes,_ she thought_, it had been hard but in the end it had all been worth it'_

"When you going over to Teddy's?" Ron asked interrupting his friend's train of thoughts.

"I'm seeing him later tonight and on Boxing Day" Harry replied "He made me promise to go over and play with him after he had all his new toys"

Ron laughed "Cute little lad though, isn't he?" Harry nodded.

"Harry! Come inside, leave the lovebirds alone!" Ginny called from the kitchen door.

He jumped up and followed her into the living room where they cuddled up by the fire.

"What time are you going to be back tonight?" she asked; her voice muffled by Harry's t-shirt.

"About 9ish; not entirely sure, why?" he asked.

"Just wanted to know how long I'd be cold in bed for," she said smiling.

"I thought your mom said 'no exceptions'?" He replied, confused.

"She gave in, thanks to Ron and Hermione!" Ginny giggled.

"Good; it'll be nice to wake up to your beautiful face on Christmas Day" Harry smiled.

"Harry?" Harry moaned softly against her cheek to acknowledge her. "Do you think that future will come true, like we said?"

He turned her so he could see her face.

"I do" Harry said "I can imagine having three children and all three of them coming into our bedroom to wake us up on Christmas morning desperate to open their presents and not moving from our bedroom until they had proof we were getting up"

Ginny, who was sitting on her boyfriend's lap, stared intently into his eyes as he described the scene. She could have sworn that she had seen it in his eyes what he was envisioning. The future that she had wanted she was a little girl when she had first heard the story of The Boy Who Lived, the future that she had almost thought was not going to happen in her fourth year, the future she had faith in when he'd kissed her in the common room, the future she had lost when she saw him 'dead' in Hagrid's arms and the future she now knew she would get.

She smiled to herself as Harry carried on telling her of the things he could happily imagine. This was certainly going to be a great Christmas.

Life certainly hadn't been gotten of to a great start for our heroes, and after many battles, many fights, many tears and many traumas they were finally getting their life to how it should have been; happy.

Merry Christmas you guys! Give me a pressie and make me smile - review!!!


End file.
